In FocusNot having own space helps London Czech Centre forge fruitful ties with UK
partners, says head Tereza Porybná

For the last two years, Tereza Porybná has been the director of the Czech
Centre in London. Under her leadership, the UK branch of the international
network of cultural institutes is working to cultivate a cool, modern image
of the Czech Republic via projects in fields such as the performing arts
and design. Last week I discussed its work with Porybná in her office at
the Czech Centre, which is in the fashionable Covent Garden district.

“To briefly explain how the Czech Centre in London works, we don’t
have our own building and we don’t have our own exhibition space. And we
don’t have them on purpose.

“If we really, really wanted to I suppose we could arrange them but for
us it’s very important to bring Czech culture and Czech art to our UK
partners, to reach a new audience and to create bridges that are
long-lasting.

“So we try not to do one-off events but to create some sort of long-term
networks.

“Apart from organising events, in the offices that you see now we have
language courses. That’s one part of our activities. It’s actually
quite big – we have over 100 students in each trimester.

“As for the events, we work in visual arts, performing arts, design and
fashion, literature, music, film of course – as most Czech centres do.

“Our special focus is the performing arts. It’s something we focus on
a lot, especially contemporary dance and physical theatre.

“Since I came we started working a lot more with fashion, bridging
fashion and visual arts. And we have a long tradition in film, as well.”

Do you have to coordinate that programme with Prague? Or is it the case
that once they chose you to lead the Centre that they kind of leave you to
it?

“I think they leave us to it, pretty much. I think it’s amazing.
It’s a big privilege but also a big responsibility because within the
means you have you can do almost whatever you want.

“Of course there are some priorities set by the HQ. For example, you
have to do a little science project. Or you should do the language courses
or somehow cover all the fields.

“But otherwise I’ve never had any comments on my programme. We just do
what we want and what we believe is best.”

“I think it comes back to what I said earlier, that we don’t have our
own exhibition space. So we work with people that are London-based or
Bristol-based or Edinburgh-based that can make themselves heard.

“That’s how we do it. All our events are full, basically. We don’t
have a problem with not having people coming to our events. That’s
because we are able to choose and to work with the right partners.

“And even if it’s a niche event, we are sort of able to navigate this
niche. I’m not sure whether that would work if we had our own space.”

Is that the approach of Czech Centres in other cities – that they have
their own space and hold short-term exhibitions, that kind of thing?

“For some of them. But I think a lot of us who are heads of Czech
Centres… I think we are as an institution moving more towards cooperative
projects and really integrating Czech artists or filmmakers or whoever
within the scene as it is in the cities.

“I think if you look at the programme in Berlin or Bucharest or any
other centre it’s good and it reflects not just what’s happening in the
Czech scene but also what’s happening in the scene of the particular
city.”

Are there particular kinds of events that you know will be a hit if you
organise them, that tend to be popular?

“Classical music concerts obviously [laughs], which we don’t organise
because it just seems too easy. That’s always a hit. People love Czech
classical music. It’s a huge phenomenon here.

“But it’s also something that would happen anyway. So we try to help
the underdogs a little bit, rather than getting involved in something
that’s so sure.

“It depends on who you want to target. We don’t do it, but whenever
Chinaski is playing here, these big bands, it’s always packed with all of
the au pairs, all of the young Czech people working here. They love it.

“I think what the Czech Centre is for introducing stuff that is maybe
not a hit in the Czech Republic but has the potential to be a hit in some
sort of a scene here.

“That’s what’s beautiful about London. You have an audience for
everything.”

At the end of the summer I met the new acting head of the Czech Centres
network, Zdeněk Lyčka. He was telling me that he wants Czech Centres to
place more emphasis on science and innovation. Is that something that you
are getting involved in?

“Yes, that’s the reason I was a little bit late today. As well as
being the head of the Czech Centre I’m also president of EUNIC London,
which is a network of all European cultural institutes working in London.

“I don’t really believe in pushing national topics in London. When you
were asking about how to bring people to events in London, unless you are
doing really expat oriented events, you won’t bring them to Czech things.

“You will bring them to topical things, you will bring them to something
they are interested in because it’s an important topic for them. Be it, I
don’t know, video art or be it the immigration situation in Europe.

“That’s why I like working with EUNIC, because this larger platform
really forces you to think about these topics and how you can merge them
through these national institutes.

“One of our big projects, which is opening on February 4, is about video
gaming and virtual realities. We’re focusing on the indie scene but also
looking at games that have for example an immigration aspect or a mental
health aspect.

“It will be at the Finnish Institute and there will be a coding school
for girls that will be led by a Finnish academic who is a star in the area.

“We will also be part of the London Games Festival at Somerset House.
Then we will be part of the Future Fest, where some Czech games will be
exhibited.

“And just now we talked to the university in Greenwich about doing some
projects around their medical conference and looking at ways how digital
art and gaming can actually contribute to the healing process.”

London, photo: Cnbrb, Free DomainIf we could end on a personal note, you‘ve been here for two years as
director of the Czech Centre in London – how have you enjoyed the
experience?

“I love it. It’s great. It’s a privilege to do the job and it’s
super interesting.

“I came for the job, not for the city. I’m more interested in cities
outside the metropolises of Europe, so I think Bucharest would be the
choice of my heart.

“But I’m really happy to be in London. It makes you grow in really
unexpected ways. So the two years have been quite amazing and a really big
change for me. Professionally and personally, as well.”